Lemon Lime Yogurt Cake

I made this yogurt cake on a whim a few years ago because I wanted to try substituting butter. Very quickly it became a favorite! It's super moist and has a different texture from usual pound cakes. Sometimes I make it all lemon and also add half sour cream, which makes it even better. Both variations are in the recipe card at the bottom. 

Originally published in August 2018, this post has been updated with images and text to serve you better. The recipe now includes a variation to the original recipe. 

On one side I'm quite traditional when it comes to cakes, you know, you cream butter and sugar, add the eggs, blah blah. They almost never fail, like the popular Lemon Layer Cake.

But being the proliferous baker that I am, things get boring pretty quickly and one of the ingredients that caught my eye at the time was yogurt. It seems like a lifetime ago now as yogurt is now a common ingredient in baking. 

This yogurt cake was the first one I tried. I was hooked. The fact that it doesn't have butter makes for a very different cake, not only in flavor but in texture.

The acidic part of the yogurt makes it tender and moist. Sort of like what buttermilk does. It comes together quickly and bakes beautifully.

Main ingredients

• Lemons and limes - I use both whenever I can, but since limes are tricky sometimes (not enough juice, not much flavor) I also make it with only lemons. Both versions are amazing. 
• Yogurt - the other key ingredient. It needs to be natural and greek works well. This recipe used to be a yogurt cake only, but I started using half sour cream and I think it might be even better. But all yogurt works fine also. 
• Oil - any type you like works. Usually, it's sunflower oil, but I also use olive oil sometimes.

Top tips

Yogurt: I found that different brands make for a slight difference in texture, so you might need to find the one you like the most. I don't recommend using low-fat yogurts.

Storing: it keeps very well for several days. I suggest wrapping and refrigerating it after 2 days. Or freeze up to a month. 

Glaze: I use a simple powdered sugar glaze and it works great because the cake itself has enough citrus flavor to balance the sugary coating. A sprinkle of powdered sugar goes wonderfully if you want a more simple cake. 

Variations

Individual bundt cakes, so cute with the glaze dripping slowly. Never fails to impress the neighbors. 

Muffins, a recipe yields at least 12 regular muffins.

Snacking cake, it's a good recipe for making a single layer 9-inch round or square cake. 

Other recipes you might like:
Lemon Cream Loaf
Lemon Blueberry Crumb Cake
Lemon Olive Oil Bundt Cake
Lemon Polenta Cake

Let me know if you make this recipe! I’d love to hear what you think about it.
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Lemon Lime Yogurt Cake

★★★★★ 5 from 1 reviews

• Author: Paula Montenegro
• Prep Time: 15
• Cook Time: 50
• Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes
• Yield: 8 slices 1x
• Category: Cakes
• Method: Baking
• Cuisine: International

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Description

I made this lemon-lime yogurt cake on a whim a few years ago because I wanted to try substituting butter. Very quickly it became a favorite! It's super moist and has a different texture from usual pound cakes. Sometimes I make it all lemon and also add half sour cream, which makes it even better.

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Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

For the cake:

• 1 ½ cups (210g) all-purpose or cake flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 ¼ cups (250g) sugar
• ½ cup (120g) plain Greek yogurt, room temperature
• ½ cup (120g) sour cream, at room temperature
• ½ cup (125g) vegetable oil
• 3 eggs, at room temperature
• Zest and juice of 1 lemon, divided
• Zest and juice of 1 lime, divided
• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract

For the glaze:

• ¾ cup powdered sugar
• Juice, from above
• Zest to decorate

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Instructions

For the cake:

1. Preheat oven at 350ºF / 180ºC.
2. Spray or butter a 10x4-inch (27x9cm) loaf cake pan and line with a strip or parchment paper.
3. In a large bowl beat sugar, yogurt, sour cream, oil, eggs, half the lemon and lime juices, zest, and vanilla for 1-2 minutes.
4. Add dry, sifted ingredients (flour, baking powder, and salt) in 2 parts and beat just to incorporate well. Don't overbeat or the cake will be tough.
5. Pour batter into the prepared pan and bake for 45-50 minutes, until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. The surface will be shiny and possibly cracked, not as dry as regular cakes.
6. Let cool on a wire rack and unmold carefully.

For the glaze:

1. Beat powdered sugar with remaining citrus juice until no lumps remain. Add juice in batches so you make it as thick or runny as you wish.
2. Pour over room temperature cake and decorate with zest before it hardens.

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Notes

Size variations - Individual bundt cakes, so cute with the glaze dripping slowly. Never fails to impress the neighbors. Muffins, a recipe yields at least 12-14 regular muffins. Snacking cake, it's a good recipe for making a single layer 9-inch round or square cake.

Storing: it keeps very well for several days. I suggest wrapping and refrigerating it after 2 days. Or freeze up to a month.

Keywords: lemon yogurt cake

Paula Montenegro

I'm Paula, a baker for more than 30 years and your designated recipe finder, sharing the best ones on this blog, with simple ingredients + easy-to-follow instructions.